HipHop in the Ruhr Area - Recorded and Remixed / Episode 06
- Series: Recorded and Remixed
Hip Hop cannot be erased from the youth culture of the Ruhr Area. And the Ruhr Area cannot be erased from the history of HipHop in Germany.
Obviously, nobody wants to deny the pioneers that came out of Heidelber (Advanced Chemistry, Stieber Twins, Cora E.) that were grabbed by the Amercian-style Rap subculture, and who created their own identity in German HipHop. The protagonists quickly realised that it is easier to talk about your life in your own mother tongue. They picked up political and social topics and questioned the immigrants' position in our country. Not surprising as the majority of them belonged to the second generation of migrants, and they saw themselves confronted with these topics on a daily basis.
Not to forget the works of "Die Fantastischen Vier" from Stuttgart. They made German Rap popular in this country, no doubt. Thanks to them, HipHop arrived in the Pop scene.
However, the Dortmund location also has its place on the historic HipHop map. In 1989, TOO STRONG came together here - certainly one of the most important HipHop crews of the country. They have been active for more than 20 years now (with small interventions).
The art of HipHop is a street culture. It has developed in the ever-changing industrial metropolises. Thus, it is not surprising that there was a lot of breeding ground in this region to make the HipHop plant flourish and grow. Melting pot Ruhr so to speak.
„Wenn Arbeit hier nicht Kraft mal Weg ist - widerleg‘ es!“ (RAG aka Ruhrpott AG)
Too Strong (Dortmund) / Creutzfeld & Jakob (Witten)
We met up with Too Strong founder Doze and Flipstar, Lakman One (aka Luk Stylewalker) and DJ Edler of Creutzfeld & Jakob at Dortmund harbour. Doze and Too Strong belong to the first wave of German HipHop, Creutzfeld & Jakob belong to the following generation. At the end of the 1990s, a strong wind blew through the scene coming from Hamburg and Stuttgart. That's when they were - along with RAG promising representatives from the middle of Germany.
„Denn dort wo ich wohne, trinkt man die Krone“ (Too Strong, „Tatort Ruhrgebiet“)
In a relaxed talk by the beer table, we discussed the significance of HipHop for the Ruhr Area and the Ruhr Area for HipHop. What are the particular charakteristics, the pecularities, the charme and the message?
„Hier kommt fettes Zeug für euch aus Witten City, per Express geliefert.
Fünf MCs im Stress und Fieber, Jungs ihr seid komplett geliefert.“
(Creutzfeld & Jakob, „Bunkerwelt Witten“)
Die Bandbreite (Duisburg) / Snaga & Pillath (Gelsenkirchen)
With their anti-hymn "Dat is Duisburg“ and the corresponding video, Die Bandbreite received nationwide attention for the first time. The other songs of the duo are a lot less funny but engaged and sometimes controversial. For rappers Wojna and DJ Torben, everything is political. They refer to the socially critic "Consious Rap" that has its roots in the US-American civil rights movement. In this style, the word and its message are put in the centre of attention. It is about information and uncomfortable realities. With their controversial truths, the band often finds itself in the crossfire of criticism. Yet the band sees this headwind as confirmation of their works.
The opposite is represented by Snaga & Pillath. They stand for the Rap generation that became popular through labels such as Aggro Berlin (Sido) and Optik (Kool Savas). The Rap duo was founded in 2005 and created a hymn for the region with their track "R.U.H.R.P.O.T.T.". This track shows the solidarity to their home of the majority of the scene that goes as far as being proud to come from the "Pott" (Ruhr Area). The two are from Gelsenkirchen - analagies to the football fans' mentality cannot be denied.
„Du musst schon hier geboren sein, um dat zu ertragen“ (Die Bandbreite, „Dat is Duisburg“)
„Wir ham lange genug die Fresse gehalten.
Kopf hoch, meine Leute jetzt kommen bessere Zeiten für den R.U.H.R.P.O.T.T.“ (Snaga & Pillath, „R.U.H.R.P.O.T.T.“)
"The Ruhr Area - recorded and remixed“ - a series of episodes by Jens Mayer, Jörg Stiepermann and Peter Hesse on music, people and the Ruhr Area.
Go to channel: Recorded and Remixed
Obviously, nobody wants to deny the pioneers that came out of Heidelber (Advanced Chemistry, Stieber Twins, Cora E.) that were grabbed by the Amercian-style Rap subculture, and who created their own identity in German HipHop. The protagonists quickly realised that it is easier to talk about your life in your own mother tongue. They picked up political and social topics and questioned the immigrants' position in our country. Not surprising as the majority of them belonged to the second generation of migrants, and they saw themselves confronted with these topics on a daily basis.
Not to forget the works of "Die Fantastischen Vier" from Stuttgart. They made German Rap popular in this country, no doubt. Thanks to them, HipHop arrived in the Pop scene.
However, the Dortmund location also has its place on the historic HipHop map. In 1989, TOO STRONG came together here - certainly one of the most important HipHop crews of the country. They have been active for more than 20 years now (with small interventions).The art of HipHop is a street culture. It has developed in the ever-changing industrial metropolises. Thus, it is not surprising that there was a lot of breeding ground in this region to make the HipHop plant flourish and grow. Melting pot Ruhr so to speak.
„Wenn Arbeit hier nicht Kraft mal Weg ist - widerleg‘ es!“ (RAG aka Ruhrpott AG)
Too Strong (Dortmund) / Creutzfeld & Jakob (Witten)
We met up with Too Strong founder Doze and Flipstar, Lakman One (aka Luk Stylewalker) and DJ Edler of Creutzfeld & Jakob at Dortmund harbour. Doze and Too Strong belong to the first wave of German HipHop, Creutzfeld & Jakob belong to the following generation. At the end of the 1990s, a strong wind blew through the scene coming from Hamburg and Stuttgart. That's when they were - along with RAG promising representatives from the middle of Germany.
„Denn dort wo ich wohne, trinkt man die Krone“ (Too Strong, „Tatort Ruhrgebiet“)In a relaxed talk by the beer table, we discussed the significance of HipHop for the Ruhr Area and the Ruhr Area for HipHop. What are the particular charakteristics, the pecularities, the charme and the message?
„Hier kommt fettes Zeug für euch aus Witten City, per Express geliefert.
Fünf MCs im Stress und Fieber, Jungs ihr seid komplett geliefert.“
(Creutzfeld & Jakob, „Bunkerwelt Witten“)
Die Bandbreite (Duisburg) / Snaga & Pillath (Gelsenkirchen)
With their anti-hymn "Dat is Duisburg“ and the corresponding video, Die Bandbreite received nationwide attention for the first time. The other songs of the duo are a lot less funny but engaged and sometimes controversial. For rappers Wojna and DJ Torben, everything is political. They refer to the socially critic "Consious Rap" that has its roots in the US-American civil rights movement. In this style, the word and its message are put in the centre of attention. It is about information and uncomfortable realities. With their controversial truths, the band often finds itself in the crossfire of criticism. Yet the band sees this headwind as confirmation of their works.
The opposite is represented by Snaga & Pillath. They stand for the Rap generation that became popular through labels such as Aggro Berlin (Sido) and Optik (Kool Savas). The Rap duo was founded in 2005 and created a hymn for the region with their track "R.U.H.R.P.O.T.T.". This track shows the solidarity to their home of the majority of the scene that goes as far as being proud to come from the "Pott" (Ruhr Area). The two are from Gelsenkirchen - analagies to the football fans' mentality cannot be denied.
„Du musst schon hier geboren sein, um dat zu ertragen“ (Die Bandbreite, „Dat is Duisburg“) „Wir ham lange genug die Fresse gehalten.
Kopf hoch, meine Leute jetzt kommen bessere Zeiten für den R.U.H.R.P.O.T.T.“ (Snaga & Pillath, „R.U.H.R.P.O.T.T.“)
Jens Prüter / Deck 8 (Dortmund)
At first, we meant to meet Jens Prüter on a rooftop in the North of Dortmund to talk to him about Heavy Metal and the label Century Media. However, it turned out that Prüter is a connosseur of the HipHop scene. At the end of the 1990's, he co-founded the Deck 8 label which released the albums of HipHop crews and artists, the one of Main Concept and Total Chaos for example. Dortmund-based acts such as Dike or Lee Buddah gained a nationwide forum. The label is now history but Prüter managed to put the perfect words to the HipHop phenomenon."The Ruhr Area - recorded and remixed“ - a series of episodes by Jens Mayer, Jörg Stiepermann and Peter Hesse on music, people and the Ruhr Area.
Related content:
- The Ruhr area - recorded and remixed
- The Ruhr Area - Recorded and Remixed / Episode 00
- Rock.2010 - Recorded and Remixed / Episode 01
- The Mülheim Breed - Recorded and Remixed / Episode 02
- Heavy Metal - Recorded and Remixed: Episode 03
- Down-to-earth Movers and Shakers - Recorded and Remixed / Episode 04
- Clubbing/ Dancing Industry - Recorded and Remixed / Episode 05
Go to channel: Recorded and Remixed
Thu, 07.10.2010
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These days, more than 5 million inhabitants do experience the transformation of their post- industrial Ruhr area in the western part of Germany to an exciting European „place to be“, a budding metropolis in a post-Capital of Culture 2010 identification process with its industrial culture as part of a collective memory being a characteristic feature – and an orchestrated mass event.
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